This thesis presents a novel coarse-grained model of DNA, in which bases are represented as rigid nucleotides. The model is shown to quantitatively reproduce many phenomena, including elastic properties of the double-stranded state, hairpin formation in single strands and hybridization of pairs of strands to form duplexes, the first time such a wide range of properties has been captured by a coarse-grained model. The scope and potential of the model is demonstrated by simulating DNA tweezers, an iconic nanodevice, and a two-footed DNA walker - the first time that coarse-grained modelling has been applied to dynamic DNA nanotechnology.

The problem of deriving irreversible thermodynamics from the re versible microscopic dynamics has been on the agenda of theoreti cal physics for a century and has produced more papers than can be digested by any single scientist. Why add to this too long list with yet another work? The goal is definitely not to give a gen eral review of previous work in this field. My ambition is rather to present an approach differing in some key aspects from the stan dard treatments, and to develop it as far as possible using rather simple mathematical tools (mainly inequalities of various kinds). However, in the course of this work I have used a large number of results and ideas from the existing literature, and the reference list contains contributions from many different lines of research. As a consequence the reader may find the arguments a bit difficult to follow without some previous exposure to this set of problems."

After about a century of success, physicists feel the need to probe the limits of validity of special-relativity base theories. This book is the outcome of a special seminar held on this topic. The authors gather in a single volume an extensive collection of introductions and reviews of the various facets involved, and also includes detailed discussion of philosophical and historical aspects.

This monograph provides the first up-to-date and self-contained presentation of a recently discovered mathematical structure-the Schrodinger-Virasoro algebra. Just as Poincare invariance or conformal (Virasoro) invariance play a key role in understanding, respectively, elementary particles and two-dimensional equilibrium statistical physics, this algebra of non-relativistic conformal symmetries may be expected to apply itself naturally to the study of some models of non-equilibrium statistical physics, or more specifically in the context of recent developments related to the non-relativistic AdS/CFT correspondence.

The study of the structure of this infinite-dimensional Lie algebra touches upon topics as various as statistical physics, vertex algebras, Poisson geometry, integrable systems and supergeometry as well as representation theory, the cohomology of infinite-dimensional Lie algebras, and the spectral theory of Schrodinger operators."

Material particles, electrons, atoms, molecules, interact with one another by means of electromagnetic forces. That is, these forces are the cause of their being combined into condensed (liquid or solid) states. In these condensed states, the motion of the particles relative to one another proceeds in orderly fashion; their individual properties as well as the electric and magnetic dipole moments and the radiation and absorption spectra, ordinarily vary little by comparison with their properties in the free state. Exceptiotls are the special so-called collective states of condensed media that are formed under phase transitions of the second kind. The collective states of matter are characterized to a high degree by the micro-ordering that arises as a result of the interaction between the particles and which is broken down by chaotic thermal motion under heating. Examples of such pheonomena are the superfluidity of liquid helium, and the superconductivity and ferromagnetism of metals, which exist only at temperatures below the critical temperature. At low temperature states the particles do not exhibit their individual characteristics and conduct themselves as a single whole in many respects. They flow along capillaries in ordered fashion and create an undamped current in a conductor or a macroscopic magnetic moment. In this regard the material acquires special properties that are not usually inherent to it.

The aim of this volume of scientific essays is twofold. On the one hand, by remembering the scientific figure of Eduardo R. Caianiello, it aims at focusing on his outstanding contributions - from theoretical physics to cybernetics - which after so many years still represent occasion of innovative paths to be fruitfully followed. It must be stressed the contribution that his interdisciplinary methodology can still be of great help in affording and solving present day complex problems. On the other hand, it aims at pinpointing with the help of the scientists contributing to the volume - some crucial problems in present day research in the fields of interest of Eduardo Caianiello and which are still among the main lines of investigation of some of the Institutes founded by Eduardo (Istituto di Cibernetica del CNR, IIAS, etc).

During the last decade, various powerful experimental tools have been developed, such as small angle X-ray and neutron scattering, X-ray and neutron reflection from interfaces, neutron spin-echo spectroscopy and quasi-elastic multiple light scattering and large scale computer simulations. Due to the rapid progress brought about by these techniques, one witnesses a resurgence of interest in the physicochemical properties of colloids, surfactants and macromolecules in solution. Although these disciplines have a long history, they are at present rapidly transforming into a new, interdisciplinary research area generally known as complex liquids or soft condensed matter physics: names that reflect the considerable involvement of the chemical and condensed matter physicists. This book is based on lectures given at a NATO ASI held in the summer of 1991 and discusses these new developments, both in theory and experiment. It constitutes the most up-to-date and comprehensive summary of the entire field.

This thesis presents several significant new results that shed light on two major puzzles of modern cosmology: the nature of inflation, the very early phase of the universe that is thought to have given rise to the large-scale structures that we observe today; and that of the current accelerated expansion. In particular, it develops a clean method for characterizing linear cosmological perturbations for general theories where gravity is modified and/or affected by a new component, called dark energy, responsible for the accelerated expansion. It proposes a new extension to what were long thought to be the most general scalar field theories devoid of instabilities, and demonstrates the robustness of the relation between the energy scale of inflation and the predicted amplitude of gravitational waves. Finally, it consolidates a set of consistency relations between correlation functions of the cosmological density field and investigates the phenomenological consequences of their potential violation. Presented in a clear, succinct and rigorous style, each of these original results is both profound and important and will leave a deep mark on the field.

Complexity Science and Chaos Theory are fascinating areas of scientific research with wide-ranging applications. The interdisciplinary nature and ubiquity of complexity and chaos are features that provides scientists with a motivation to pursue general theoretical tools and frameworks. Complex systems give rise to emergent behaviors, which in turn produce novel and interesting phenomena in science, engineering, as well as in the socio-economic sciences.
The aim of all Symposia on Chaos and Complex Systems (CCS) is to bring together scientists, engineers, economists and social scientists, and to discuss the latest insights and results obtained in the area of corresponding nonlinear-system complex (chaotic) behavior.
Especially for the 4th International Interdisciplinary Chaos Symposium on Chaos and Complex Systems, which took place April 29th to May 2nd, 2012 in Antalya, Turkey, the scope of the symposium had been further enlarged so as to encompass the presentation of work from circuits to econophysics, and from nonlinear analysis to the history of chaos theory.
The corresponding proceedings collected in this volume address a broad spectrum of contemporary topics, including but not limited to networks, circuits, systems, biology, evolution and ecology, nonlinear dynamics and pattern formation, as well as neural, psychological, psycho-social, socio-economic, management complexity and global systems.
"

This textbook presents the fundamental concepts and theories in thermal physics and elementary statistical mechanics in a very simple, systematic and comprehensive way. This book is written in a way that it presents the topics in a holistic manner with end-of-chapter exercises and examples where concepts are supported by numerous solved examples and multiple-choice questions to aid self-learning. The textbook also contains illustrated diagrams for better understanding of the concepts. The book will benefit students who are taking introductory courses in thermal physics, thermodynamics and statistical mechanics.

This book focuses on the nonlinear dynamics based on the vector fields with univariate quadratic functions. This book is a unique monograph for two-dimensional quadratic nonlinear systems. It provides different points of view about nonlinear dynamics and bifurcations of the quadratic dynamical systems. Such a two-dimensional dynamical system is one of simplest dynamical systems in nonlinear dynamics, but the local and global structures of equilibriums and flows in such two-dimensional quadratic systems help us understand other nonlinear dynamical systems, which is also a crucial step toward solving the Hilbert's sixteenth problem. Possible singular dynamics of the two-dimensional quadratic systems are discussed in detail. The dynamics of equilibriums and one-dimensional flows in two-dimensional systems are presented. Saddle-sink and saddle-source bifurcations are discussed, and saddle-center bifurcations are presented. The infinite-equilibrium states are switching bifurcations for nonlinear systems. From the first integral manifolds, the saddle-center networks are developed, and the networks of saddles, source, and sink are also presented. This book serves as a reference book on dynamical systems and control for researchers, students, and engineering in mathematics, mechanical, and electrical engineering.

Vortex flow is one of the fundamental types of fluid and gas motion. These flows are the most spectacular in the form of concentrated vortices, characterized by the localization of vorticity (curl of velocity) in bounded regions of a space, beyond which the vorticity is either absent or rapidly falls down to zero. Concentrated vortices are often observed in nature, exemplified by atmospheric cyclones, whirlwinds and tornados, oceanic vortices, whirlpools on a water s- face, and ring vortices caused by explosive outburst of volcanoes. In technical - vices concentrated vortices form when flow separates from sharp edges of flying vehicles and ships. Among these are vortices flowing off the ends of airplane wings, and intentionally generated vortices for intensification of burning in c- bustion chambers, vortices in cyclonic devices used for mixing or separation of impurities in fluids and gases. One such remarkable and frequent type of conc- trated vortices is a vortex ring which constitutes a vortex tube closed into a t- oidal ring moving in a surrounding fluid like an isolated body out of contact with solid boundaries of the flow region if such boundaries exist. Formation and motion of vortex rings are important part of the dynamics of a continuum medium and have been studied for more than a century.

This book addresses the problem of multi-agent systems, considering that it can be interpreted as a generalized multi-synchronization problem. From manufacturing tasks, through encryption and communication algorithms, to high-precision experiments, the simultaneous cooperation between multiple systems or agents is essential to successfully carrying out different modern activities, both in academy and industry. For example, the coordination of multiple assembler robots in manufacturing lines. These agents need to synchronize. The first two chapters of the book describe the synchronization of dynamical systems, paying special attention to the synchronization of non-identical systems. Following, the third chapter presents an interesting application of the synchronization phenomenon for state estimation. Subsequently, the authors fully address the multi-agent problem interpreted as multi-synchronization. The final chapters introduce the reader to a more complex problem, the synchronization of systems governed by partial differential equations, both of integer and fractional order. The book aimed at graduates, postgraduate students and researchers closely related to the area of automatic control. Previous knowledge of linear algebra, classical and fractional calculus is requested, as well as some fundamental notions of graph theory.

This book starts with an introduction to the basic concepts of multistability, then illustrates how multistability arises in different systems and explains the main mechanisms of multistability emergence. A special attention is given to noise which can convert a multistable deterministic system to a monostable stochastic one. Furthermore, the most important applications of multistability in different areas of science, engineering and technology are given attention throughout the book, including electronic circuits, lasers, secure communication, and human perception. The book aims to provide a first approach to multistability for readers, who are interested in understanding its fundamental concepts and applications in several fields. This book will be useful not only to researchers and engineers focusing on interdisciplinary studies, but also to graduate students and technicians. Both theoreticians and experimentalists will rely on it, in fields ranging from mathematics and laser physics to neuroscience and astronomy. The book is intended to fill a gap in the literature, to stimulate new discussions and bring some fundamental issues to a deeper level of understanding of the mechanisms underlying self-organization of matter and world complexity.

Exploiting powerful techniques from physics and mathematics, this book studies animal movement in ecology, with a focus on epidemic spread. Pulmonary syndrome is not only feared in epidemics of recent times, such as COVID-19, but is also characteristic of epidemics studied earlier such as Hantavirus. The Hantavirus is one of the book's central topics. Correlations between epidemic outbreaks and precipitation events like El Nino are analyzed and spatial reservoirs of infection in off-period of the epidemic, known as refugia, are studied. Predicted traveling waves of infection are successfully compared to field observations. Territoriality in scent-marking animals is presented, with parallels drawn with the theory of melting. The flocking and herding of birds and mammals are described in terms of collective excitations. For scientists interested in movement ecology and epidemic spread, this book provides effective solutions to long-standing problems.

Intended for beginning graduate students or advanced undergraduates, this text covers the statistical basis of thermodynamics, including examples from solid-state physics. It also treats some topics of more recent interest such as phase transitions and non-equilibrium phenomena. The presentation introducesmodern concepts, such as the thermodynamic limit and equivalence of Gibbs ensembles, and uses simple models (ideal gas, Einstein solid, simple paramagnet) and many examples to make the mathematical ideas clear. Frequently used mathematical methods are discussed in detail and reviews in an appendix. The book begins with a review of statistical methods and classical thermodynamics, making it suitable for students from a variety of backgrounds. Statistical mechanics is formulated in the microcanonical ensemble; some simple arguments and many examples are used to construct th canonical and grand-canonical ensembles. The discussion of quantum statistical mechanics includes Bose and Fermi ideal gases, the Bose-Einstein condensation, blackbody radiation, phonons and magnons. The van der Waals and Curoe-Weiss phenomenological models are used to illustrate the classical theories of phase transitions and critical phenomena; modern developments are intorducted with discussions of the Ising model, scaling theory, and renormalization-group ideas. The book concludes withy two chapters on nonequilibrium phenomena: one using Boltzmann's kinetic approach, and the other based on stochastic methods. Exercises at the end of each chapter are an integral part of the course, clarifying and extending topics discussed in the text. Hints and solutions can be found on the author's web site.

This book presents a comprehensive account of the renormalization-group (RG) method and its extension, the doublet scheme, in a geometrical point of view. It extract long timescale macroscopic/mesoscopic dynamics from microscopic equations in an intuitively understandable way rather than in a mathematically rigorous manner and introduces readers to a mathematically elementary, but useful and widely applicable technique for analyzing asymptotic solutions in mathematical models of nature. The book begins with the basic notion of the RG theory, including its connection with the separation of scales. Then it formulates the RG method as a construction method of envelopes of the naive perturbative solutions containing secular terms, and then demonstrates the formulation in various types of evolution equations. Lastly, it describes successful physical examples, such as stochastic and transport phenomena including second-order relativistic as well as nonrelativistic fluid dynamics with causality and transport phenomena in cold atoms, with extensive numerical expositions of transport coefficients and relaxation times. Requiring only an undergraduate-level understanding of physics and mathematics, the book clearly describes the notions and mathematical techniques with a wealth of examples. It is a unique and can be enlightening resource for readers who feel mystified by renormalization theory in quantum field theory.

Discontinuity in Nonlinear Physical Systems explores recent developments in experimental research in this broad field, organized in four distinct sections. Part I introduces the reader to the fractional dynamics and Lie group analysis for nonlinear partial differential equations. Part II covers chaos and complexity in nonlinear Hamiltonian systems, important to understand the resonance interactions in nonlinear dynamical systems, such as Tsunami waves and wildfire propagations; as well as Lev flights in chaotic trajectories, dynamical system synchronization and DNA information complexity analysis. Part III examines chaos and periodic motions in discontinuous dynamical systems, extensively present in a range of systems, including piecewise linear systems, vibro-impact systems and drilling systems in engineering. And in Part IV, engineering and financial nonlinearity are discussed. The mechanism of shock wave with saddle-node bifurcation and rotating disk stability will be presented, and the financial nonlinear models will be discussed.

This book uses new ideas and language for understanding how self-organization and complexity trend toward increased efficiency. Different measures for efficiency from multiple disciplines are used to probe the ones that provide the most insight. One major goal is to seek a common framework to trace the increase of efficiency as a measure of the level of organization and evolutionary stage of a complex system. The chapters come from a satellite meeting hosted at the Conference on Complex Systems, in Cancun, 2017. The contributions will be peer-reviewed and contributors from outside the conference will be invited to submit chapters to ensure full coverage of the topics. This text will appeal to students and researchers working on complex systems and efficiency.

This book introduces selected recent findings on the analysis and control of dynamical behaviors for coupled reaction-diffusion neural networks. It presents novel research ideas and essential definitions concerning coupled reaction-diffusion neural networks, such as passivity, adaptive coupling, spatial diffusion coupling, and the relationship between synchronization and output strict passivity. Further, it gathers research results previously published in many flagship journals, presenting them in a unified form. As such, the book will be of interest to all university researchers and graduate students in Engineering and Mathematics who wish to study the dynamical behaviors of coupled reaction-diffusion neural networks.

This book describes a comprehensive approach to applying systems science formally to the deep analysis of a wide variety of complex systems. Detailed 'how-to' examples of the three phases (analysis-modeling-design) of systems science are applied to systems of various types (machines, organic (e.g. ecosystem), and supra-organic (e.g. business organizations and government). The complexity of the global system has reached proportions that seriously challenge our abilities to understand the consequences of our use of technology, modification of natural ecosystems, or even how to govern ourselves. For this reason, complex mathematics is eschewed when simpler structures will suffice, allowing the widest possible audience to apply and benefit from the available tools and concepts of systems science in their own work. The book shows, in detail, how to functionally and structurally deconstruct complex systems using a fundamental language of systems. It shows how to capture the discovered details in a structured knowledge base from which abstract models can be derived for simulation. The knowledge base is also shown to be a basis for generating system design specifications for human-built artifacts, or policy recommendations/policy mechanisms for socio-economic-ecological systems management. The book builds on principles and methods found in the authors' textbook Principles of Systems Science (co-authored with Michael Kalton), but without prerequisites. It will appeal to a broad audience that deals with complex systems every day, from design engineers to economic and ecological systems managers and policymakers.

One of the questions about which humanity has often wondered is the arrow of time. Why does temporal evolution seem irreversible? That is, we often see objects break into pieces, but we never see them reconstitute spontaneously. This observation was first put into scientific terms by the so-called second law of thermodynamics: entropy never decreases. However, this law does not explain the origin of irreversibly; it only quantifies it. Kinetic theory gives a consistent explanation of irreversibility based on a statistical description of the motion of electrons, atoms, and molecules. The concepts of kinetic theory have been applied to innumerable situations including electronics, the production of particles in the early universe, the dynamics of astrophysical plasmas, quantum gases or the motion of small microorganisms in water, with excellent quantitative agreement. This book presents the fundamentals of kinetic theory, considering classical paradigmatic examples as well as modern applications. It covers the most important systems where kinetic theory is applied, explaining their major features. The text is balanced between exploring the fundamental concepts of kinetic theory (irreversibility, transport processes, separation of time scales, conservations, coarse graining, distribution functions, etc.) and the results and predictions of the theory, where the relevant properties of different systems are computed.

This book presents sensemaking strategies to support security planning and design. Threats to security are becoming complex and multifaceted and increasingly challenging traditional notions of security. The security landscape is characterized as 'messes' and 'wicked problems' that proliferate in this age of complexity. Designing security solutions in the face of interconnectedness, volatility and uncertainty, we run the risk of providing the right answer to the wrong problem thereby resulting in unintended consequences. Sensemaking is the activity that enables us to turn the ongoing complexity of the world into a "situation that is comprehended explicitly in words and that serves as a springboard into action" (Weick, Sutcliffe, Obstfeld, 2005). It is about creating an emerging picture of our world through data collection, analysis, action, and reflection. The importance of sensemaking to security is that it enables us to plan, design and act when the world as we knew it seems to have shifted. Leveraging the relevant theoretical grounding and thought leadership in sensemaking, key examples are provided, thereby illustrating how sensemaking strategies can support security planning and design. This is a critical analytical and leadership requirement in this age of volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity that characterizes the security landscape. This book is useful for academics, graduate students in global security, and government and security planning practitioners.

This book addresses the COVID-19 pandemic from a quantitative perspective based on mathematical models and methods largely used in nonlinear physics. It aims to study COVID-19 epidemics in countries and SARS-CoV-2 infections in individuals from the nonlinear physics perspective and to model explicitly COVID-19 data observed in countries and virus load data observed in COVID-19 patients. The first part of this book provides a short technical introduction into amplitude spaces given by eigenvalues, eigenvectors, and amplitudes.In the second part of the book, mathematical models of epidemiology are introduced such as the SIR and SEIR models and applied to describe COVID-19 epidemics in various countries around the world. In the third part of the book, virus dynamics models are considered and applied to infections in COVID-19 patients. This book is written for researchers, modellers, and graduate students in physics and medicine, epidemiology and virology, biology, applied mathematics, and computer sciences. This book identifies the relevant mechanisms behind past COVID-19 outbreaks and in doing so can help efforts to stop future COVID-19 outbreaks and other epidemic outbreaks. Likewise, this book points out the physics underlying SARS-CoV-2 infections in patients and in doing so supports a physics perspective to address human immune reactions to SARS-CoV-2 infections and similar virus infections.

This textbook for graduates and advanced undergraduates in physics and physical chemistry covers the major areas of statistical mechanics and concludes with the level of current research. It begins with the fundamental ideas of averages and ensembles, focusing on classical systems described by continuous variables such as position and momentum, and using the ideal gas as an example. It then turns to quantum systems, beginning with diatomic molecules and working up through blackbody radiation and chemical equilibria. The discussion of equilibrium properties of systems of interacting particles includes such techniques as cluster expansions and distribution functions and uses non-ideal gases, liquids, and solutions. Dynamic behavior -- treated here more extensively than in other texts -- is discussed from the point of view of correlation functions. The text concludes with the problem of diffusion in a suspension of interacting hard spheres and what can be learned about such a system from scattered light. Intended for a one-semester course, the text includes several "asides" on topics usually omitted from introductory courses, as well as numerous exercises.